Page 43 of The Boss's Triplet Surprise

Leah’s friends had stood with her unwaveringly throughout the pregnancy. They’d brought food to her house, accompanied her to doctor’s appointments, and invited her over for dinner more times than Leah could count. Her mom and dad had been equally supportive. Sharon had called Leah almost every day, and Mike, in his usual quiet, slightly worried way, had sent her emails with links to well-rated strollers.

The support from Leah’s family and friends only emphasized how absent Dan had been, though. He hadn’t called or texted. And since their conversation in the elevator, he hadn’t even tried to start a conversation with her again.

Leah had found a generous check from Dan on her desk each week, even more than they’d agreed on, but that was all. She hadn’t been able to bring herself to cash a single one. The money seemed to reinforce the chasm between them, in which Leah was nothing more than an employee and Dan was nothing more than her boss. Even though they’d discussed it, the generous checks almost felt like a payoff.

“Sweetie?” Sharon looked at Leah with concern. “It’s your turn to try one of the baby foods.”

“Right! Sorry. Pregnancy brain.” Leah smiled self-deprecatingly and Sharon smiled back.

“I remember when I was pregnant with you, I once got on the wrong bus and didn’t notice until I was halfway to Saint Louis.”

“She was trying to get to the grocery store,” Mike added. “I had to drive halfway across the country to get her.”

“Such exaggeration.”

Leah’s parents smiled at each other, and Mike put his hand over Sharon’s. The simple gesture of love was almost too much for Leah to bear and she turned to the rows of unlabeled jars.

“Okay, here we go.” She took a spoonful of something orange and tentatively popped it into her mouth. “Sweet potato? And… pumpkin?”

“Nope.” Mike flipped over the label. “Carrot. I don’t understand the point of this game, anyway. Is it important that Leah can recognize the different baby-food flavors? In case of allergy or something?”

Sharon and Leah caught each other’s eyes and burst into laughter.

“No,” Leah managed. “We’re having fun. It’s a game!”

Mike’s eyes widened. “Right! I get that, now.” But his surprise only made his wife and daughter laugh harder. Eventually, even Mike joined in.

Leah was glad to be in her childhood home with her parents, far from Chicago and far from Dan. She felt more like herself, instead of the mopey, hormonal person she’d become. She knew that she was better off without Dan. Yet she’d found herself wishing, over and over, that he’d reach out to her. He never had. Here, in Madison, Leah was starting to accept that.

“Maybe this game isn’t such a hit,” Sharon said dubiously once they’d caught their breath. “Let’s try another. I’ll show you a diaper with melted chocolate in it, and you have to guess the candy bar. Just a minute?—”

“Mom.” Leah put a hand over her mother’s. “It’s okay. I really appreciate you guys trying to make this party for me, but I’m just as happy to sit and talk. Or try to go for a waddle.”

“I know.” Sharon bit her lip. “I just… I want this all to be perfect for you. I remember what a magical time pregnancy was for me, despite the morning sickness and the backache and everything else. I want it to be the same for you, but it seems you’ve had it rough.”

“I’m fine.” Leah put on a smile that she didn’t quite feel. “Really.”

“I know, I know. It’s just you used to talk a lot about your friend, Dan. We were planning to have a visit with him. You seemed so… happy. And then all of a sudden, we didn’t hear about him anymore. We don’t want to pry, but are you sure you’re all right?”

Tears sprung to Leah’s eyes. She thought she’d covered well with her parents, but of course her mother was more observant than she’d guessed. A desire to confide everything welled up in her, but she worried that her parents would judge her.

But then, Leah looked at her mother’s sweet, open face and her father’s kind interest. Her parents had never judged her, not even when she was a child and got in trouble at school or fought with a friend. They’d always just helped her.

“Well, there may be a little more to the story than I mentioned. Dan and I made an agreement, like I told you, to have a child together. But we also agreed that I would pretend to be his girlfriend. His father was only willing to let him inherit his company if Dan were a family man. I felt terrible about lying, but I agreed. For a few months, we were pretending to be dating, and I think, during that time… I started to have real feelings for Dan. And I thought he had feelings for me, too.”

Leah glanced at her parents to see if they were judging her for the deception, but they were still listening. Sharon put an arm around her and Leah leaned into her mother gratefully.

“But then, at the twelve-week ultrasound, when we found out we would be having triplets, Dan freaked out. I don’t know what was going through his head, because he wouldn’t talk to me about it. He ran off to work. I waited for him to reach out, and when he didn’t, I knew that I had made a mistake. He didn’t care about me as much as I thought. And my babies and I deserve better than that.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” Sharon pulled Leah into her side. “I had no idea all this was happening.”

“I felt so stupid.” Leah shook her head. “I’m an adult, almost a mother, and yet I let myself get caught up in a daydream like a teenager.”

“No, no. You were right to follow your heart. Loving someone doesn’t make you stupid, even if it doesn’t work out.”

Leah gave a watery chuckle. “I really feel like a teenager now, with you giving me life advice.”

“You’ll always be my little girl, no matter how old we get.” Sharon smiled. “You’ll understand that soon enough.”

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